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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercurius" data-source="post: 7841520" data-attributes="member: 59082">The issue of canon is an interesting question because there are so many fictional properties that have essentially become shared universes. And of course once you have an RPG involved, you have as many "alternate universes" as there are campaigns. Ed Greenwood, in his magnanimity, has been very clear about this: the "true" Forgotten Realms is your Forgotten Realms.Each property is unique in terms of how canon is involved. Middle-earth is relatively clear: only the works written by Tolkien are truly canonical. The films are essentially homages to Tolkien; the RPGs are just that: games, with elements of fan-fiction.The Forgotten Realms is more loose: it is truly a shared universe that has been developed and expanded by dozens, even hundreds, of authors and artists. Yet the "original Realms" still exists as Ed Greenwood's home campaign (I still hope someday to see an "Ed Greenwood's Realms" box set or book), but the "true" Realms--as I said above--is your Realms.Star Wars is a bit trickier, because there are more layers, some of which conflict, and I think it is clear to say, more debate. While there's an official canon, it does include films beyond the original creator's vision, and while I know it is "official," it is a bit jarring when we get the sense that it isn't really canonical to the guy who created it all. And unlike Tolkien, Lucas is still alive, which adds another complexity. So it is far more messy: there is a wide range of fan views on what is and is not "true" Star Wars, and in a way everyone is entitled to assemble their own Star Wars universe. Some fan purists might consider the original trilogy to be the one and true Star Wars film, while others might broaden it to include the prequels because they are still Lucas. While the extended universe has been relegated to fanfic, I think it is perfectly fine if someone wants to include it as part of their Star Wars universe, whether or not it is officially canon. But that hypothetical person (ahem) should be clear that for most it is fanfic.Ultimately I don't think it really matters what is canon and what isn't, as it is all fiction. I personally see it as existing in layers: the one true Star Wars story is the original trilogy; everything else is a pale shadow, in my opinion. The prequel films were visually beautifully and felt like Lucas films, if latter-day "obsessed-with-sfx-Lucas." They are a bit jarring in how they lacked the soul of the original trilogy, but they still feel enough like Star Wars.The Disney films are tricky. On one hand, they are canon and they share some of the classic characters. On the other, to me they feel like fanfic. They don't feel like canon, like the true Star Wars story -- in a similar way that the recent Star Trek movies felt somehow removed from the "true" Star Wars chronology (and actually were, as far as timelines go - so it still kind of worked).I never read any of the books, video games, or even RPGs, so that really is no more or less than fanfic to me.I find the Disney Star Wars films to be entertaining scifi extravaganzas, but rather underwhelming in terms of story-telling and characterization. But I'm still excited to see Skywalker, even if I feel that the overall effect of every film post-ROTJ has been to diminish the original potency of Star Wars. I mean, even if we don't love what Disney has done, we still get to see people run around with lightsabers and fly spaceships (but for the life of me, why is Rey running with her lightsaber activated?).In summary, I would suggest that we look at the question of Star Wars canon in a slightly different way: That what canon means (in Star Wars) is not as much what is "official" or "true," as what constitutes a coherent story world. It doesn't make anything that exists outside of that story world to be "false," just more akin to alternate takes - not unlike the alternate endings you see for some movies.</blockquote>

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